By: Isuru Parakrama
December 15, Colombo (LNW): The Colombo Magistrate’s Court on December 13 directed the Fraud Investigation Bureau (FIB) to launch an investigation into candidates and their representatives who failed to submit proper election expense reports, as required by the Election Expenditure Regulation Act, following the 2024 Presidential Election held on 21 September.
The order was issued by Colombo Additional Magistrate Manjula Ratnayake, after reviewing information presented by the FIB in response to seven complaints filed by the Election Commission.
These complaints highlighted non-compliance with the Election Expenditure Act, which mandates the submission of detailed reports by candidates regarding their campaign expenses.
The Court has instructed the FIB to submit a detailed progress report on the ongoing investigation by 14 March 2025. During the proceedings, the FIB informed the Court that, under the provisions of the Election Expenditure Act No. 03 of 2023, all candidates and their representatives were required to provide a comprehensive breakdown of their election-related spending to the Election Commission by 13 October 2024.
However, the Commission has raised concerns that several candidates and their teams have yet to comply with this requirement.
The failure to submit these reports has prompted the Election Commission to file formal complaints, urging the authorities to address the issue swiftly.
